HISTORY

HISTORY

The Portakal family has been contributing to Türkiye’s art and culture for four generations since the beginning of the 20th century. Yervant Portakal, who was born in 1883, started antiques and auctions in the Grand Bazaar. He organized numerous auctions in homes and palaces. These include the auctions of Hejaz Governor Ahmed Hatip Pasha, Prince Burhaneddin, and Osman Hamdi Bey. Yervant Portakal, who helped establish the Istanbul Auction Directorate, served there as an honorary employee for a while.

Continuing his father's profession, Aret Portakal also held numerous house and palace auctions. These include the auctions of Ayşe Sultan, Princess Emine, Mahmut Muhtar Pasha, Grand Vizier Kamil Pasha, Ahmet Dallı, and Consul Behçet Bey. Raffi Portakal, who adopted the family profession from 1964 onwards, opened his own gallery in 1973. Raffi Portakal began giving art and culture seminars and organizing exhibitions in 1984. These exhibitions include "Abdulmecid Efendi Paintings" (for Beymen), "Ottoman Calligraphy", "Orientalists", and "Ottoman Masterpieces".

Between December 10, 2004 and January 12, 2005, he organized the first open-to-sale exhibition in Türkiye, "The Great Masters of Western Painting", which included paintings by Picasso, Monet, Renoir, Dali, Lautrec, Dufy, and Van Dongen. Between February 16, 2010 and April 28, 2010, he organized the open-to-sale exhibitions "The Great Masters of Western Painting from Monet to Picasso", and between April 20, 2010 and May 9, 2010, he organized the open-to-sale exhibitions "The Modern and Contemporary Masters of World Art from Warhol to Hirst".

He organized the Istanbul Antique and Art Fair auctions between 1987-1991. Among the many auctions he organized are the collections of Satvet Lütfi Tozan, Samet Ağaoğlu, Salah Cimcoz, Ferit Edgü, Mesut Hakgüden and our country's most important collectors Şevket Rado and Emin Barın. Raffi Portakal, in addition to his antique and auction activities, also provides art consultancy to private museums, institutions and private collections. "Culture and Art Seminars" were held at the Portakal Art and Culture House between 1985-1999.

He helped form a collection of Sakıp Sabancı's paintings and calligraphy. In 1998, the "Golden Letters" exhibition consisting of select works from this collection was hosted by the New York Metropolitan, Paris Louvre, Los Angeles County Museum, Harvard University Arthur M. Sackler Museum, and Deutsche Guggenheim Berlin. Raffi Portakal is among the founders of the Sakıp Sabancı Museum together with Sakıp Sabancı.

Arden Yervant Portakal has been continuing the family business in Miami, USA for many years. Raffi Portakal’s daughter Maya Portakal continues the family business as the fourth generation. After her education in Paris, she has been continuing the work of Portakal Art and Culture House since 2007. She organized the “Designed Jewellery from the Great Masters of Contemporary Art” exhibition between January 13, 2012 and January 28, 2012. Jewellery designed by artists such as Anish Kapoor, Alexander Calder and Damien Hirst were put up for sale in the exhibition. Portakal Art and Culture House published the P World Art Magazine quarterly in Turkish and English from the spring of 1996 to the summer of 2010.